Eastman quality in early 2010

[Llewlyn]

I have my eyes on a used Eastman archtop made in early 2010. I understand that Eastman builds very high quality instruments now, but how about back in 2010?

Ll.

[jamf]

I believe I've read that they may have had particularly soft/fragile finishes and may have been looser with their specifications, but are very nice guitars.

[Roccorobb]

Originally Posted by jamf

I believe I've read that they may have had particularly soft/fragile finishes and may have been looser with their specifications, but are very nice guitars.

The finish issues are well documented. As far as looser specs for build quality, I'm not aware of any conversations along those lines. I own an early e10d and a slightly later (2015?) e10om. Great guitars

[musicman1951]

A friend purchased a mandolin that basically came unglued in more than one spot, but he eventually got a replacement instrument. I don't think it was back that far.

[Silly Moustache]

Hi, I have a sunburst AR805 built in 2007.

The binding looks a little amatuerish, and the finish has more checking than my '34 Gibson L-4/7.

This is at least partly due to the original owner who bought a load of guitars and stored them in a furniture container for some years - susceptible to high/low humidity and extremes of temperature.

Nevertheless - the neck is perfect and it sounds like a dream.

[Mandobart]

I have an MDC805 mandocello built in 2007. I bought it in 2009. I switched out the bridge and nut about 10 years ago to convert it essentially to an AR805. I've had it strung with 13's since then.

I've had no problems with it - play it every day, taken on a lot of gigs and festivals.

[Bluenose]

I bought a 2011 E10SS in 2012 that I've hung on to while more expensive guitars have come and gone. The nitro finish is crazed and marks easily being a bit soft but I think it's the best sounding of my 6 acoustics including my Martin '12 OM18A. The Red Spruce top has aged very nicely and being short scale it's not hard to play. The nut is 1 11/16" but not a problem for me.

[Llewlyn]

Thanks for all this helpful feedback!

Ll.

[Backpocketnj]

I have a very beat-up e20om from that period and it's really nice (minus all the abuse it took from the previous owner). Sounds great and plays well. I try to aim for 2019-2020 Eastman as I think that was a sweet spot when quality control went up, lots of models, but the pre-pandemic craze meant shipping some varnish when it was too hot and QC possibly going down.

[dmoss74]

i still own 2 2010's era eastmans. an ac420 from 2012, and an e6 om from 2014.

both sound great and have held up to this point without any major issues.

i've also owned quite a few others that came and went. but of all the ones i've owned ( i recall it being an ac320 sb), i never had any quality issues. i live close enough to the pomona office/facility that i took it directly to them to fix...which they did, even though i wasn't the original owner.

i recently took an interest in looking at them again and see that they have definitely separated themselves from the price point MIC offers from that era.

and i had no idea that they took majority ownership of bourgois guitars. i'd imagine dana had issues around the pandemic and needed some cash infusion. but i'm only speculating.

some of the models (i may have forgotten a couple) i've owned are:
e6d
ac 320 (2 of them)
ac420 (still own)
e6om (still own one, had another at a past point)
ac120 ( beach/woods/beater). it was surprisingly good

there are probably 1 or 2 others i'm forgetting, but these ones for sure.

anyway, i wouldn't hesitate to get another one of their guitars from that time frame, as long as it's in good shape, and not ridiculously priced.

good luck!

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Llewlyn

I have my eyes on a used Eastman archtop made in early 2010. I understand that Eastman builds very high quality instruments now, but how about back in 2010?

Ll.

Hi Llewlyn
There was a shop in Denver we used to visit (Bobby's) and they sold these beautifully carved top Blonde Eastman jazz models. Only time I've ever been tempted to jump into the arch-top world.

They were awesome then, and I'm guessing if it's 15 yrs old, it may need setup and touchup, but unless it's been mistreated, they were great guitars…and some of them had carved tops.

Eastman back then was already known for building great guitars below the comparative price point from other brands. Both acoustic and jazz guitars.

I have not tracked their reputation, but when I ran into players who owned them at gatherings, owners/players were more than satisfied and the guitars played and sounded great!

[rollypolly]

I had an early ac322 and it sounded great and played good too. It definitely had some imperfect binding work but it wasn’t bad enough to keep me from playing it. I only sold it cause it sounded too much like my other guitars.

[Llewlyn]

Thank you for all your replies guys.

I wanted to pull the trigger on the used Eastman, but it seems that somebody anticipated me :-(

However, because GAS is pressing, I just pulled the trigger of a new one (same model).

Will do a NGD soon.

Ll.